Work-support.



J. J. GILLBSPIE.

WORK SUPPORT.

APPLIGATION FILED Novl s. 1909.

1,022,41 2. Patented Apr. 9, 1912.

nntlwi um mgm WTA/555551 WVM/THQ.

MM #ffm/M' UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN J GILLESPIE, 0F BOSTON,

MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR T0 UNITED SHOE MACHINERY COMPANY, OF PATE-BSCN,NEW JERSEY, A. CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

WORK-SUPPORT.

Specication of Letters Patent. Original application filed October 7,1908, Serial No. 456,572.

Y Patented Apr. 9, 1912. Divided and this application filed November 5,

1909. Serial No. 526,395.

To all 'whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JOHN J. Grnnnsrin, a citizen of the United States,residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts,have invented certain Im-;

provements in l/Vork-Supports, of which the following description, inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, likereference characters on' the drawings indicating like parts in theseveral iigures.

This invention relates to work supports for presses and other machinesfor operat- 1ng upon shoes and other articles and 1t 1s herein shown asembodied in a work support for ashoe stamping machine. These machinesare employed for stamping trade or other marks upon the bottoms ofshoes. In many instances the .manufacturer desires to stamp the shoebottom in a plurality of places-as, for example, to stamp a trademark orname upon the tread face of the heel and a price or other mark upon thetread face of the shank or other portion of the sole. The difference inthickness of the stock interposed between the stamp and the` support atthe heel and at the sole requires relative adjustment of the supportand. stamp. It has heretofore been proposed to provide work supports,which, by means of screws or paw] and ratchet devices, can bel adjustedfor differences in thickness of the work, but in machines intended forsuchv work as that described it is desirable that provision be made foreffecting an adjustment of fairly definite extent and for varying in adefinite manner the adjustment for heels of different standard heights.In accordance with the present invention provision is made for adjustingthe work support through definite predetermined distances and thisadjustment can be madey while the shoe is on the support and between theoperation of stamping upon the sole and stamping upon the heel.

In the construction shown, the work support comprises a pivoted guide inwhich a spindle is mounted for vertical movement and devices areprovided which are arranged to be moved into and out of position forraising the spindle to determine the height at whichl it will besupported in the guide. These devices are shown as comprising aplurality of pivoted blocks one or more ofI f of the spindle supportingwhich may be swung' from and toward position to support the spindle. Thepivoted guide is shown as provided with a flaring portion located belowits spindle guiding surfaces and adapted to inclose the swinging blocksboth when they are in their operative position and when they are intheir inoperative position.

A further feature of this invention consists in the construction andarrangement blocks by which a plurality of said blocks are arranged formovement together by forces applied to one of them. The upper block orthe upper blocks each have a depending pin or stud adapted to engage aside face or a notch in the next lower block so that by applying forceto any one block all the blocks below it will be moved together. Stopsare provided for arresting the movement of the blocks when they are intheir operative and inoperative positions and preferably alsospring-controlled means are provided for yieldingly holding' the blocksin their operative or inoperative positions and this means is arrangedso that when the blocks are moved from their operative position half waytoward their inoperative positions they will be automatically forced theremaining distance.

These and other features of the invention, including certain details ofconstruction and arrangements of parts, will be explained in connectionwith the following description of a preferred embodiment of theinvention and will be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a side elevation of a bottom stampingmachine embodying the present invention. This machine is in its generalconstruction and operation essentially similar to a machine shown in anapplication for Letters Patent filed by Gordon and Topham, Serial No.186,368, and an application tiled by John Gillespie, Serial No. 456,572,of which the present ap-vplication is a division. Fig. 2 is a section onapproximately the line 2-2 of Fig.l 4f. Fig. 3 is a perspective view ofthe shoe supporting means. Figs. 4t and 5 show the shoe supporting meansand the stamp in different adjusted positions for marking the heel andsole of a shoe, respectively.

The machine comprises a wheel or turret 2 adapted to carry a pluralityof stamps 3,

4C for the heel and sole, respectively, together with suitable means foractuating the turret toward the work-supporting means located below it.The work-supporting means comprises, in accordance with this invention,a base 5 adapted to rest upon a post 6 and sustaining means therefor,which may be like that shown in said applications and adapted to yieldfor slight variations in the thickness of the work or it may be of anyother suitable type. line of pressure applied by the stamp, ears 7between which is pivoted a laterally projecting arm 8 from a spindleguide 10 in which the work-supporting spindle 12 is arranged foradjustment. A pivot pin 15 projects upwardly from the base and holds inassembled relation a plurality of superposed blocks 16 adapted to swingfrom and toward a position in alinement with or vertically under thespindle 12 where they form auxiliary rests for the spindle. Each ofthese blocks is provided with a spring-pressed plunger 18 adapted tobear on one or the other of the two beveled surfaces 19 and 20 of thepin 15. These plungers, engaging the beveled faces of the pin, hold theswinging blocks normally in one or the other of two definite positionsand when a block is moved slightly past the center in one or the other`direction the plungers will continue that movement and force the blockfully to the deinite position which it is approaching. Each block exceptthe bottom one is provided with a depending stud indicated at 22 adaptedto engage a recess 28 in the adja cent face of the next lower block. Therecesses are so shaped that when any block is turned from itsinoperative position toward its operative or spindle-raising positionall the blocks below it are also compelled to turn in that direction.Then any of the blocks are engaged and turned toward inoperativeposition all the blocks above it are compelled to move with the block towhich the turning force is applied. Limiting studs 24, 25 are arrangedto stop the lower block in its two positions and the engagement of thepins 22 in the recesses 23 causes the other blocks to be stopped inalinement with the bot-tom block. The blocks or part of them are or maybe proportioned in thickness to the standard heights of heels so thatdifferent groups of 'them will produce different adjustments in 'theheight of the spindle according to the standard height of the heel onthe shoes being stamped. The number of the blocks and the thickness orrelative thickness of the several parts may be varied as conditions mayrequire. The spindle has a pin and slot connection with the guide 10which permits the spindle to be lifted sufficiently to introduce all theblocks 16 beneath it if desired. This connection limits the moverIhebase 5 has, at one side of thement of the spindle in the guide when theguide is tipped and so prevents the spindle f from being accidentallydisplaced or being withdrawn from the guide.

In the use of the invention the shoe may be appli-ed to the spindle asindicated in Fig. t for stamping the tread face of the heel. Then, whilethe stamp-carrying turret is raised the spindle with itsguide may betipped, as shown in Fig. 3, to raise the spindle and give access to theblocks, whereupon the operator will engage as many of the blocks as arerequired to compensate for the difference in thickness of the sole andthe particular heel of the shoe being stamped and will swing thoseblocks into their operative position under the spindle. The spindleguide will then be tipped back to its upright position and in thismovement the spindle, after contacting with the upper face of the topblock in operative position, will be raised to elevate the work to thealtitude in which the tread face of the sole to be stamped is in thesame or substantially the same relation to the stamp as was the treadface of the heel. In shifting the blocks toward their operative positionit is only necessary to engage the top one of the blocks which it isdesired to use, because the pins 22 compel each of the blocks below thetop one to move with that one. It is unnecessary for the operator torestrain the upper blocks from moving because the spring plungers 1S bytheir engagement with the inclined face of the pin 15 holds those blocksfrom movement. Similarly when moving the blocks to their inoperativeposition it is only necessary to engage the lowest block which is to beturned and all the others are compelled to turn with it.

I-Iaving explained the nature of this invention and described apreferred construction embodying the same, I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States 1. In a machine of theclass described, a shoe supporting jack comprising a spindle, a guide inwhich the spindle is adjustable endwise, and spindle supporting meansindependent of the guide and including ya plurality of blocks movable inparallel paths one or more of which may be positioned under the spindleto determine the altitude at which the work will be sustained.

2. In a machine of the class described, a shoe supporting jackcomprising a spindle, a guide in which the spindle is adjustableendwise, and spindle supporting means including a plurality of blocks ofdifferent thicknesses mounted to permit one or more to be shifted from aposition at one side of the spindle into a position under the spindle.

3. A machine of the class described, having in combination, a shoesupporting jack comprising a spindle, a spindle guide, a base upon whichthe guide and spindle are pivotally mounted and upon which the spindlenormally rests, and a block pivotally mounted on the base at one side ofthe spindle and adapted when the spindle and guide are rocked awaytherefrom to be swung into or out of position to rest the spindle.

4. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a guide in which the spindle is movable endwise, means forresting the spindle and a block normally supported in an inoperativeposition adjacent to the spindle, said block being movable about an axisat one side of the line of pressure upon the spindle to or from positionunder the spindle to change the elevation at which the spindle will besupported.

5. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a guide in which the spindle is movable endwise, and aplurality of blocks connectedy for movement together or separately atthe will of the operator and adapted to be positioned under the spindle.

6. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a guide in which the spindle is movable endwise, a plurality ofblocks arranged for movement under the spindle to determine the heightat which it is supported and means connecting the blocks constructed andarranged to cause the subjaeent block or blocks to be moved with anyblock to which force is applied or shifting toward operative position.

7. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a guide in which the spindle is movable endwise, a plurality ofblocks arranged for movement under the spindle to determine the heightat which it is supported and means connecting the blocks constructed andarranged to cause the superposed block or blocks to be moved with ablock to which force is applied for shifting it away from operativeposition.

8. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, and a plurality of superposed spindle supporting blocksconnected for movement together by force applied in one direction to thelower block and for movement together by force applied in the oppositedirection to the upper block.

9. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a plurality of superposed spindle supportingV blocks 16, andthe pin 22 carried by one block and arranged to engage the laterallyopen recess or side face 23 of the adjacent block as and for the purposedescribed.

10. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle, a plurality of superimposed spindle supporting blocks mountedfor movement toward and from spindle supporting position and means foryieldingly retaining the blocks in the positions to which they aremoved.

11. In a machine of the class described, a work support comprising aspindle 12, a guide l0, and blocks 16 pivoted at l5 for movement fromand toward position to support the spindle, each block when in operativeposition supporting the block above it.

12. In a machine of the class described, a sliding spindle, guidingmeans therefor, means for limiting the movement of said spindlerelatively to said guiding means, and a plurality of superposedsupporting blocks for said spindle arranged for movement about a commonaxis into or out of alinement with said spindle.

13. A device of the class described having, in combination, a spindle, aguiding member for the spindle pivoted to permit movement about an axisat one side of the line of pressure upon the spindle, and a plurality ofsuperposed supporting blocks for said spindle arranged for movementabout a common axis so that one or more blocks may be positioned inalinement with said spindle.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOI-IN J. GILLESPIE.

Witnesses:

HERBERT W. KENWAY, JAMns R. HODDER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

